A vehicle cigarette lighter or other plug-in ignitor, typically includes a connector body or housing, a component that is physically receivable in the connector body, and an electrical terminal or terminals joined to the connector body for making electrical connection with the component. If the part or surface of the component with which electrical connection is to be made by the terminal has a relatively small width, the electrical connection is simple. For example, the plug-in ignitor shown in the U.S. Pat. No. 4,176,903 to Cairo et al shows a pair of blade-like terminals 21 that simply plug between the legs of a pair of conventional electrical terminals 28 that are themselves fitted within a of pair slots 41 in the connector body. It is a simple matter to space the legs of the terminals less far apart than the width of the blades to closely confine the terminals within the slots, thereby assuring a solid fit and good electrical connection.
Vehicle cigarette lighters typically include a component such as a metal shell, which is often cylindrical. This shell is receivable within a connector body, and an electrical connection with the shell is made by a ground terminal and a feed terminal joined to the connector body. The metal shell generally includes a central coaxial pin extending from the bottom thereof. It is relatively simple to make electrical connection with this pin by plugging it between the legs of a confined feed in the manner described above. However, electrical connection must also be made with the cylindrical outer surface of the lower portion of the shell. Since this surface is too large in diameter to be conveniently plugged between the legs of a terminal, as is the pin, it is more difficult to make electrical connection with it. Electrical connection will thus be most conveniently made by compressing one side only of a terminal against the component surface. This makes it more difficult to solidly anchor and locate the terminal, since it cannot be confined on both sides. If such a terminal is joined to the connector body so that the terminal's length is generally parallel to the path followed by the component as it is plugged into the connector body, then making electrical contact with the surface of the component is relatively easy. For example, the terminal disclosed in the U.S. Pat. No. 3,587,029 to Knowles shows a typical resilient terminal 23 with a bowed or arcuate contact section 25. Contact section 25 may easily make electrical connection with the edge of a circuit board 12, which is moved along a path that is essentially parallel to the length of the terminal 23. The arcuate contact side 25 conveniently serves as a lead-in surface for the edge of the circuit board 12, and is simply compressed as the board 12 moves in.
It may be readily seen that if a cylindrical cigarette lighter shell were substituted for the circuit board 12, electrical contact could still easily be made with a bowed terminal that was similarly oriented. However, it may be desirable, in the interest of saving space, to orient the terminal 90.degree. the other way, normal or perpendicular to the axis of the cigarette lighter shell. In such a case, a conventional bowed or arcuate terminal becomes essentially unusable. For example, referring to the Knowles patent, if the terminal 23 were moved 90.degree. from its existing orientation, the arcuate contact side 25, which had previously served as a lead-in surface, would now actually block the circuit board 12 from moving into the housing, since it would then run into the edge of the terminal, rather than moving along its contact side 25. The problem becomes more difficult if it is necessary to make electrical contact with a cylindrical surface, such as the outer surface of a cigarette lighter shell. Then, the point of contact would have to be made very near the center of curvature of the arcuate side of the terminal in order to avoid applying a force to the terminal that would tend to force it out to either side and out of position.